NoonTalk needs continued financial support from CEO Dasmond Koh, auditors warn
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Auditors said NoonTalk will continue to require financial support from CEO and controlling shareholder Dasmond Koh to continue operating.
PHOTO: BT FILE
- NoonTalk Media faces serious financial trouble, with auditors warning it may not continue operating because of losses, cash outflows, and debts above assets.
- CEO and controlling shareholder Dasmond Koh has promised 12 months of financial support, including help from his listed shares and a $1.8 million loan conversion.
- The company hopes new China marketing income, cost cuts, and extra fundraising will improve cash flow, while it will keep quarterly reporting because of the uncertainty.
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SINGAPORE – NoonTalk Media’s financial difficulties appear to remain unsolved despite financial support from its chief executive and controlling shareholder Dasmond Koh.
Auditors flagged significant uncertainty over the talent management, multimedia production and events firm’s ability to continue operating, citing its losses, cash outflows and liabilities exceeding assets.
The warning was disclosed in an Oct 14 announcement on its audited financial statements for the year ended June 30.
Koh has given a written undertaking to provide the necessary financial support for 12 months from Oct 14 to help the company meet its debts as they fall due, NoonTalk said in the statement.
The support will come mainly from Koh’s holdings of Singapore-listed shares, which can be converted into cash when the company calls upon him. It follows Koh’s conversion of a $1.8 million loan to NoonTalk into company shares in July.
This comes as independent auditor Foo Kon Tan highlighted several factors that could cast significant doubt on NoonTalk’s ability to continue operating.
The group reported a loss of $2.55 million for the financial year ended June 30, and used $2.16 million in cash in its operations.
At the end of June, its total liabilities exceeded its assets by $2.93 million. Its short-term liabilities also exceeded its short-term assets by about $2.93 million.
Short-term liabilities are obligations due within a year, while short-term assets include cash and other assets expected to be converted into cash or used within that period.
The auditor added that the assumption that NoonTalk could continue operating depended on continued financial support from Koh.
Besides Koh’s support, NoonTalk said it expected income from a new platform marketing business in China. Its subsidiary Ruiqi Zhongxin (Chengdu) Culture Technology has entered into a framework agreement with a third party to carry out promotional campaigns and place advertisements on ByteDance’s Ocean Qianchuan platform.
The board said its cash flow forecast, which took account of potential income from the marketing services, and planned cost reductions, indicated that the group could generate positive operating cash flows.
NoonTalk is also evaluating options to raise or obtain additional funds for its day-to-day operations.
For now, the board said sufficient information had been disclosed for trading in NoonTalk’s shares to continue in an orderly manner.
The Catalist-listed company will also continue reporting its financial results quarterly instead of twice a year because of the material uncertainty over its ability to continue operating.